VATICAN CITY
RTE News
Informal talks on the process of electing the next pope have begun in Rome but the starting date of the closed-door conclave to choose Benedict’s successor is not expected.
The idea is to have the new pope elected during next week and officially installed so he can preside over the Holy Week ceremonies starting with Palm Sunday on 24 March and culminating in Easter.
The general congregations, closed-door meetings in the interregnum between a papacy and the conclave to choose the next one, will hold morning and afternoon sessions in an apparent effort to discuss as much as possible in a short time.
The Vatican seems keen to have only a week of talks so the 115 cardinal electors – those under 80 – can enter the Sistine Chapel for the conclave next week.
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